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BEANES VS. BARNES. I95 

found, on the river which bears his name, at Schodack, in the 
Spring of 1609, beanes of the last year's growth.* If they were 
not habitually stored along with their corne, and if none were 
kept over, "except occasionally for seed," it is impossible to 
believe they would have been given by the hogsheads to 
Bradford, or freely furnished as a feast and food-stores for 
Hudson and his crew, — or that, as Ruttenber states, "above a 
hundred pits of corn and beans were burned " at a time.f 

As to the holes in the ground, described as " barnes, or 
welles," abounding on Shinnecock Playne, the presumption is 
very strong that they were mostly welles, from the constant 
and universal need of fresh water on sandy, flat and almost 
seagirt regions, wherever a wigwam was set up or changed in 
place. ' 

At all events there was no such condition of things in the 
Providence Plantations. The geologic features of the two lo- 
calities were entirely different. The Narragansetts put their 
barnes on hillsides, and had no need of welles in a country with 
so many springs and which Roger Williams describes as "full 
of brooks and rivers and abounding in fresh ponds." No evi- 
dence has been brought to show that welles or barnes, or old 
barnes caused any trouble to call for notice in their domains, 
while the immense sacks and baskets of their skillful handi- 
work (each holding several bushels), doubtless rendered their 
barnes fewer and smaller in size. 

The fact remains, that the hollows and holes in the ground, 
whether " welles " or " barnes" or both, were not fruits or prod- 
ucts of the soil, and in a catalogue of such fruits were out of 
place. 

Whether Au-qun-nasJi means beanes or barnes, one cannot, 
in view of the authority of Dr. Trumbull's statements, accept 
the etymologies of Mr. Tooker. 

With all his study, he does not answer the main ques- 
tion, — "Why are beanes omitted by Roger Williams in his 
Catalogue of the Fruits of the Earth, in the sixteenth Chapter 
of the Key .?" 

♦Hudson's Journal, in de Laet., 1625, Lib. III., Chap. 10. 
fTribes of Hudson's River — 150. 




ig6 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

The whole inquiry is thus relegated anew to the philolo- 
gists. Of these theR£ seem to be but two organizations in a 
position to decide. OKe, the Indian Section of the American 
Philological Society; the other, the Indian Bureau of the 
Smithsonian Institute. The latter has been for years study 
ing the hundreds of Indiiin languages of the East and West, 
and is in constant session. To it, therefore, the writer has 
submitted for consideration, both the "Key-hole" and Mr. 
Tooker's paper, in print. 

It is left for the Institute to decide these questions; and if 
Roger Williams omitted Beanes from his list of vegetables in 
the Key, we trust it will make clear to us, not only the fact, 
but also the reason why. 

Its investigations will doubtless evolve the truth, and its 
decision will bear a stamp of authority. 

William D. Ely. 

May, 1894. 



GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. 



Reminiscences of the Aborigines — their Sayings 
AND Doings. 



" Warren ! where first beside the cradled nation 
The old chief stood, we love thy storied past. 

' Sowams is pleasant for a habitation — ' 

'Twas thy first history — may it be thy last." 

Near neighbors to the Plymouth settlers were the Indians 
of the Wampanoag tribe of whom Massas^it or Osamequin 
was the principal sachem. The domain of Massasoit extended 
over a considerable territory embracing nearly all the south- 
eastern portion of Massachusetts from Cape Cod to Narra- 



L 



h--- 



GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. I97 

gansett Bay; but the villages of the Wampanoags were prin- 
cipally located within the limits of a tract of country called 
by the Indians "Pokanoket." Pokanoket comprised the region 
now occupied by the towns of East Providence, Harrington, 
Warren and Bristol in Rhode Island ; together with portions 
of Seekonk, Swanzea, and Rehoboth in Massachusetts, the 
headquarters of the chief being at the village of Sowams or 
Sowamset. 

For many years the location of Sowams was a disputed 
point, authorities variously fixing it at Barrington, Warren, 
and Bristol. Gen. Guy M. Fessenden was the first to prove 
it to have been on the site of Warren near the spring which 
still bears the sachem's name. The facts which determined 
Gen. Fessenden in arriving at his conclusions are given at 
length in his "History of Warren." This history was pub- 
lished in 1845. Several years after its publication Gen. Fes- 
senden obtained additional proof of the correctness of his 
theories. The student of Indian history is aware that, at the 
close of King Philip's war, the remnant of the Wampanoags 
fled to Maine and sought refuge from their white foes among 
the Penobscots, with whom they ultimately became blended. 
In i860, a company of Indians, under the leadership of Father 
Beeson, the "Indian's Friend," made a tour of the United 
States giving a series of entertainments in the principal cities 
and towns. The object of their enterprise was a threefold 
one. 

"1st. To prepare the public mind for a National Conven- 
tion of Representatives from the Principal Tribes and their 
Friends in the States. 

"2d. To devise and present for Congressional action, a plan 
for a protective policy between the two races. 

"3rd. To prevent the proposed Border War." 

Among the towns visited was Warren, where a prolonged 
stay was made. The Indians encamped upon some vacant 
lots on Franklin Street, just east of the railroad track. At 
their wigwams they sold bows and arrows, baskets and other 
implements of war and peace. Evening entertainments con- 
sisting of songs, dances, readings, and illustrations of various 
Indian customs were given at Armory Hall, and were at- 
tended by large audiences. 



ig8 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

The sojourn in Warren was made with a special purpose in 
view. A member of the company, Mr. Frank Loring, known 
also by the Indian name of "Big Thunder," was a Penobscot 
by birth, but claimed descent from the Wampanoag tribe. 
The ancient traditions of his people declared Sowams to have 
been located within the limits of the town of Warren, and he 
souo'ht for traces of the vanished home of his ancestors. He 
was provided with a rude chart of Sowams — the origin of 
which is unfortunately unknown — and by its means he was 
enabled to locate many of the most famous haunts of the ab- 
ori<''ines. " Big Thunder" was a man of considerable intelli- 
gence, and a splendid specimen of his race, colossal in stature, 
of commanding presence and possessing features of statu- 
esque beauty. Though advanced in years, he is, I believe, 
still living at Indian Old Town Island, Maine. It is to be 
regretted that the chart mentioned was, many years ago, de- 
stroyed by fire. 

Among the historic spots located by " Big Thunder," was 
a gentle eminence on the farm now owned by Mr. Edward 
Mason. This farm is situated on the "Birch Swamp Road," 
in the northeasterly part of the town. The hillock referred 
to had always been known to its white possessors as " North 
Hill." "Big Thunder" gave its Indian name as "Wigwam 
Mountain." It greatly resembles a wigwam in shape. A little 
to the west of it is an Indian burial place, in which, even 
now, the outlines of six or eight graves are discernable. Mr. 
Loring exhumed two or three skeletons and several pipes and 
arrowheads. He also located two other burial places, one on 
the farm of Mr. Loring Coggeshall at the "narrows" of the 
Kickemuit River; another at " Burr's Hill," in South Warren. 
About two years ago, several skeletons were unearthed at the 
latter place. These were, generally, in a fair state of preser- 
vation. One peculiarity is deserving of attention. With one 
exception, every skull was surmounted by the remains of an 
inverted copper kettle, placed like a crown upon the brows. 
The exception was a trunkless head which had been carefully 
placed in a large iron dinner-pot. 

The boundary line separating Warren and Swansea passes 
through a ledge of conglomerate generally known as "King's 



GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. 1 99 

Rocks." Here, according to Mr. Loring, Philip was in the 
habit of convening his warriors during the period immedi- 
ately preceding the war. From this point he despatched 
scouts and raiding parties to Swansea, Mattapoisett, and 
other localities. Mr. Loring knew that one of the rocks in 
this ledge had been used as a mortar for pounding maize by 
the Wampanoag squaws. Assisted by Gen. Fesscnden, he 
instituted a search, which resulted successfully. Nothing, 
however, now remains of this interesting monument of the 
past, save a fragment of stone built into the wall which skirts 
the roadside. The mortar has been carried away piecemeal 
by " relic fiends." 

Among the traditions carefully preserved by the Pe- 
nobscots was one declaring that, during Philip's War, the 
Wampanoags buried a quantity of wampum in Birch Swamp. 
" Big Thunder " brought with him directions for finding this 
hidden treasure. These directions had been handed down, in 
his tribe, from father to son for generations. They are curi- 
ous as illustrating the Indian method of determining distan- 
ces. A gentleman who accompanied him upon several 
excursions, states that, as nearly as he can recollect, they were 
as follows : 

"From 'Margaret's Cave' lo paces towards the sun at 
noonday, then 20 paces toward the setting sun in June. 

" From the highest point of the ledge of rock in Birch 
Swamp 50 paces due west in September." 

Mr. Loring spent three days searching for the buried hoard, 
but his efforts were fruitless, although he dug several holes 
at each location. Doubtless the wampum is still in the place 
where it was hidden, unless the devil, who formerly made the 
swamp one of his places of residence and whose hoofprints 
imbedded in the solid rock are to be seen there even to this 
day, has spirited it away to the lower regions. 

" Margaret's Cave," of which only a portion now remains, 
derived its name from having been, for many years, the home 
of an Indian man, probably of Wampanoag origin, "Margaret" 
being undoubtedly the anglicised pronunciation of an Indian 
name. In Birch Swamp dwelt also "Old Hippy," another abo- 
riginal. Just when these two red men lived I have been una- 



200 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

ble to ascertain ; but, presumably, it must have been nearly 
if not quite a century ago. Both lived to old age. " Hippy " 
died peacefully in his bed, but " Margaret " perished in the 
flames of his summer wigwam which he accidentally set on 
fire. Near the cave are two rocks said to be the devil and his 
wife turned to stone by some influence more powerful than 
their own. At a little distance, on the top of the ledge of 
which the cave forms a part, is a wide and deep groove in the 
rocks closely resembling the track of a huge wheel. Tradition 
says it was caused by the devil who, having quarreled with 
her, trundled his spouse over the ledge in some kind of an in- 
fernal vehicle and "dumped" her into a hollow many feet 
below. The legend is probably of Indian origin. 

There were two other Indian villages in close proximity to 
Sowams, "Kickemuit," situated around the spring of that 
name, and " Montaup " at the hill now known as " Mount 
Hope." The old Indian trail, a portion of which now consti- 
tutes " Metacom Avenue," led from the latter place through 
Kickemuit to Swansea. Along this trail Philip's warriors 
hastened on that memorable June Sabbath when the houses 
of the Swansea colonists were raided. At a point on the 
right bank of the Kickemuit near the present pumping sta- 
tion, the Indians, a few days later, set up on poles the heads 
of eight Englishmen whom they had captured at Mattapoisett 
(Gardner's Neck in Swansea). The white men who pursued 
them, took down these ghastly remains of their murdered 
comrades and buried them by the river. The eight skulls 
were accidentally exhumed some years ago. A few miles be- 
low, at " Weypoisett " or the "narrows" of the river, the 
English, against the advice of Capt. Benjamin Church, built 
a fort "to maintain the first ground they had gained by the 
Indians leaving it to them." While this fort was in process of 
construction, Philip and his warriors, who had retreated to 
Mount Hope, escaped in their canoes to Tiverton. 

On the 29th of March, 1653, "Osamequin and Wamsetto 
his son, for and in consequence of thirty-five pounds Stirling," 
sold Sowams and parts adjacent to the English. The original 
proprietors were Thomas Prince, Thomas Willet, Myles 
Standish, Josiah Winslow, William Bradford, Sr., Thomas 



GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. 201 

Clark, John VVinslow, Thomas Cushman, William White, 
John Adams, and Experience Mitchell. Settlers rapidly loca- 
ted in the Sowams territory. The proprietors' record gives 
the names of more than forty persons who owned land in 1670. 
Among these names, appears that of Hugh Cole. Mr. Cole 
settled, at an early date, in what is now Swansea, upon the 
banks of the river which still bears his name. He purchased 
his land of King Philip, and a warm friendship sprang up be- 
tween the two men which endured until Philip's death. Once 
when asked the cause of his affection for Mr. Cole, Philip re- 
plied, "He is the one Englishman who has never told me a 
lie." The following anecdote will illustrate the depth of 
the esteem cherished by the sachem for his white friend. 
Prior to the actual breaking out of the war, the Indians fre- 
quently raided the houses of the English. One evening, as 
Mr. Cole's family sat around the supper-table, an Indian run- 
ner was observed approaching the house. Philip's men being 
frequent visitors, the family felt no uneasiness. The Indian 
paused at the door of the house for a moment, then darted 
quickly away. Upon investigation, Mr. Cole found affixed 
above the entrance, three eagle's feathers — the royal insig- 
nia of the savage monarch. That night many homes were 
burned and plundered, but that of Hugh Cole remained un- 
molested. A few days later, Mr. Cole's two sons, John and 
Hugh, were captured and taken to Mt. Hope. Philip treated 
the boys with great kindness and sent them home with a 
message advising their father to flee to Aquidneck, as he 
could no longer restrain his warriors. Mr. Cole at once acted 
upon this advice, and his boat had hardly entered Mt. Hope 
Bay before he beheld his house in flames. At the close of the 
war he returned to Sowams settling upon the left bank of the 
Kickemuit. 

It was towards Pokanoket that the exiled Roger Williams 
turned his weary steps. "Sowams is pleasant for a habitation," 
he wrote, and truly it would be difficult to find a fairer spot. 
It seems a pity that the aboriginal name was ever discarded. 
And how strange that its meaning is unknown. It is notice- 
able that the early writers generally speak of the Sowams as 
"the great river." Does "Sowams " mean "Great River".? 



re »> 



;o 



202 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

Who can tell ? Year by year the past fades farther from us. 
Of the red men, who once peopled these shores, nothing re- 
mains but a few rhythmical names, a few shadowy legends, 
here and there, at our feet, a shattered pipe of clay, a broken 
stone vessel, a splintered arrowhead and — the land we 
wrested from their grasp. 

"A buried world lies close beneath our feet, 
O'er a whole peoples sepulchre we tread ; 

Yet who of all the living may repeat 
The story of the dead } " 



Virginia Baker. 



Warren, R. I., September, 1894. 



THE GREAT GALE OF SEPT. 2^, 181^. 



A Sketch by Mrs. Esther Hoppin E. Lardner of Phila- 

ADELPHIA, A SISTER OF THE LATE GeORGE HoPPIN OF 

Providence— CONTRIBUTED by Mr. Henry F. 
Richards. 



When this wonderful storm* occurred, our mother, born in 
1784, was just thirty-one years old and was the mother of 
seven children. Our father was five years older. He had been 
educated for practising medicine, but not liking the profes- 
sion, he devoted himself to the drug and chemical business. 
At the time of the gale he had just finished a large (for those 
days) laboratory and lead house for the making of dyestuffs 
and chemicals of all kinds, large retorts and carboys for vit- 
riol, &c. When set in proper order and all ready for begin- 

*In the Art Gallery are two pictures of the scene at the Great Bridge 
during the gale of Sept. 23, 1815, an account of which may be found on 
the 69th page of the Society's publications of 1893 (Ed.) 



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